Average Dental Assistants Salary in the United States
The national median salary for Dental Assistants is $48,070 per year. The middle 50% earn between $44,340 and $58,090, with 387,790 workers employed nationally.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 estimates . Data covers 50 states and 388 metro areas.
Pay distribution
Here is how Dental Assistants pay is distributed across workers nationally. The 10th percentile typically reflects entry-level or early-career pay, the median is the midpoint, and the 90th percentile represents the top earners in the field.
- 10th
- $37,130
- 25th
- $44,340
- Median
- $48,070
- 75th
- $58,090
- 90th
- $62,250
All values are percentiles of annual wages.
Dental Assistants earn close to the national median for all US workers. Solidly middle-income.
Pay is tightly clustered around the median. Most dental assistants earn within a narrow band, with less variation than many other occupations. That is often a sign of standardized roles or union and public-sector pay scales.
Job outlook
BLS projects employment for dental assistants from 2024 to 2034. Growth is above the US average of about 4% across all occupations. This is an expanding field.
- Projected growth
- +6.4%
- 24,400 net jobs over the projection period.
- Annual openings
- 52,900
- Includes growth plus replacements for workers who leave. Annual openings reflect typical replacement demand alongside any growth.
- Typical entry education
- Postsecondary nondegree award
Postsecondary training beyond high school is typically required, but a full four-year degree is not always necessary.
Where Dental Assistants earn the most
Location matters a lot. The gap between top-paying and bottom-paying states is large, so where dental assistants work can reshape their total compensation. Right now, the top-paying state is Minnesota at $65,270, about 35.8% above the national median. At the metro level, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA leads with a median of $74,600.
Top-paying states
| State | Median salary | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | $65,270 | 5,980 |
| District of Columbia | $60,580 | 630 |
| Maine | $60,070 | 1,550 |
| New Hampshire | $59,530 | 1,600 |
| Oregon | $59,490 | 5,930 |
| Washington | $58,090 | 13,050 |
| Massachusetts | $57,980 | 9,680 |
| North Dakota | $57,770 | 860 |
Top-paying metros
| Metro area | Median salary | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $74,600 | 2,870 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $72,370 | 3,910 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $64,390 | 7,530 |
| Rochester, MN | $63,450 | 320 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $62,040 | 7,100 |
| Portland-South Portland, ME | $61,240 | 830 |
| Mankato, MN | $61,010 | 120 |
| St. Cloud, MN | $61,000 | 270 |
Compare two locations side by side
Pick two states or metros to see dental assistants pay in each, along with a cost-of-living adjusted view.
Salary trend and related occupations
Between 2019 and 2025, the national median salary for Dental Assistants rose from $40,080 to $48,070, a gain of +19.9% in nominal dollars.
Over the same period, US consumer prices rose by +25.9%. Just to keep pace with inflation, the 2019 median of $40,080 would need to be worth $50,472 in 2025 dollars.
The actual 2025 median of $48,070 is −$2,402 below that inflation-adjusted benchmark, a real change of -4.8% in purchasing power.
Adjusted for inflation, pay has lost ground. Nominal growth of 19.9% has not kept up with rising prices.
- Nominal change
- +19.9%
- 2019–2025
- Cumulative inflation
- +25.9%
- US CPI, 2019–2025
- Real change
- -4.8%
- After adjusting for inflation
Median salary over time
Dental Assistants median pay by year, going back through the available BLS releases.
- 2025
- $48,070
- 2024
- $47,300
- 2023
- $46,540
- 2022
- $44,820
- 2021
- $38,660
- 2020
- $41,180
- 2019
- $40,080
BLS did not publish a median for 2000–2018, so those years are omitted.
Related occupations
Other occupations in the same field, with median pay for comparison.
- Medical Equipment Preparers
- $47,700
- Medical Assistants
- $45,690
- Phlebotomists
- $45,230
- Medical Transcriptionists
- $40,410
- Massage Therapists
- $58,450
- Pharmacy Aides
- $37,680
Common salary questions for Dental Assistants
What does the median salary mean? +
The median is the midpoint of all wages. Half of Dental Assistants workers earn more and half earn less. It is a better measure of typical pay than the average, which can be skewed by very high or very low earners.
Why does pay vary so much by location? +
Local labor markets, cost of living, industry concentration, and employer competition all affect wages. High-cost metros like San Francisco and New York often pay more in nominal terms, though some of that premium is offset by higher living costs.
How current is this salary data? +
This page uses the May 2025 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release. BLS publishes OEWS data once per year, typically in the spring for the previous May reference period.
What do the percentile ranges tell me? +
The 10th and 90th percentiles show the full pay band. The 25th to 75th percentile range, the middle 50%, is where most workers fall. A wide spread usually means experience, specialization, or location matter a lot for this occupation.